V V Friday 7-11-25 8:00pm main sky game. Well the rot is setting in and the annual free fall is starting. Stoke and Blackburn we looked a poor side against our early season games. Watford are 3 points behind us and i fully expect them to come up to 22 points on Friday night matching ourselves in the league. City look poor-lacklustre and out of ideas along with a manager who has made some wrong decisions with team selection recently. predictions- Watford host Bristol City on Friday night as both sides look to enter the international break on a high. Watford come into their clash with Bristol City off the back of a 1-1 draw with Ipswich Town on Tuesday. The Hornets took the lead through an opener from in-form skipper Imran Louza but were quickly pegged back by the Tractor Boys. Jaden Philogene equalised five minutes later, and the scores would end level. Nonetheless, it marks a positive result for Javi Gracia’s side, who have encountered troubles on the road so far this campaign. They now sit 12th in the Championship table, recording seven points from the returning boss‘ five league games in charge. As for Bristol City, they’ll be eager to end a dip in form before the break. Their midweek loss at the hands of Blackburn Rovers made it two defeats in a row, having won the three prior. It was an uncharacteristically blunt display from the Robins, who failed to register a shot on target. Nonetheless, they still sit in a more than respectable 7th place under the lead of Gerhard Struber. The South West outfit will be out to redeem themselves in front of the away fans too given that they lost 5-1 to Stoke City in their last game on the road. Here, a handful of our writers make their predictions for the game… James Ray “Bristol City will be determined to bounce back after a couple of disappointing results. It seemed as though they were still reeling from that Stoke City loss in a pretty poor performance against Blackburn Rovers. “This is a tough game to produce a response too. Watford feel a far more cohesive unit under Javi Gracia’s lead, and with a fine home record, they should be confident of a result. “I think the Robins are a better team on their day, but after a couple of defeats, it feels as though they need the international break. Watford could capitalise on that as they start to put together some improved performances. “I’ll back the Hornets to get another good result here, winning 2-1.” Prediction: Watford 2-1 Bristol City Harry Mail “Watford have seen an upturn in form under Javi Gracia, losing only one of their last four under his lead. They will be in confident mood ahead of Friday night. “The Hornets have already beaten QPR, Hull City and Middlesbrough at Vicarage Road this season. They will fancy their chances on their own patch against anyone at the moment. “Bristol City have slipped out of the play-offs after two defeats on their spin. Their heavy 5-1 loss in their last outing on their travels at Stoke City may play heavy on their minds ahead of this one. “The Robins will want to return to winning ways in Hertfordshire. However, I can see them slumping to another loss.” Prediction: Watford 2-1 Bristol City SPORTS MOLE- Watford will be looking to make it three matches unbeaten in the Championship when they play host to Bristol City on Friday night. The visitors, who have slipped to outside the playoff positions following defeats to Stoke City and Blackburn Rovers, will be aiming to return to the top six at the earliest opportunity. Match preview Since returning to Vicarage Road at the start of October, Gracia has overseen two league victories, one draw and two defeats across his opening five games back in the Championship, with Watford currently sitting 12th. A commanding 3-0 victory over high-flying Middlesbrough was followed by a well-earned 1-1 draw away at Ipswich Town, and the hosts now aim to extend their unbeaten run in November. A key figure in their recent good form has been captain Imran Louza, who has scored six goals in his last eight Watford matches, operating with confidence and leading from the front in midfield. With form improving and a comfortable gap beginning to open between themselves and the relegation positions, Watford may feel encouraged to look upwards rather than down. Home support has played its part, with the Hornets winning each of their last three matches at Vicarage Road as they attempt to establish their ground as a difficult place to go for visiting sides. A continued run of results could turn what was an underwhelming start to the campaign into the foundations of a late playoff challenge. please log in to view this image Bristol City, meanwhile, had previously enjoyed a run of three consecutive wins which has since been followed by back-to-back defeats to Stoke City and Blackburn Rovers. The manner in which the last two losses have come about may be a cause for concern for Gerhard Struber and his side. A 5-1 defeat away to Stoke was hoped to be a one-off, but a lacklustre display in the 1-0 defeat to Blackburn at Ashton Gate on Tuesday, in which the Robins failed to register a single shot on target, has raised questions regarding rhythm and confidence. Bristol City remain strong away from home, boasting one of the better records on the road in the Championship, but the recent downturn has seen them slip to seventh. However, a victory on Friday would represent a seventh league win of the season and would lift Struber's side back into the top six, a position they will want to finish in for the second season running. Watford Championship form: W L W L W D Bristol City Championship form: L W W W L L Team News please log in to view this image Giorgi Chakvetadze has not featured for Watford since April, coincidentally against Bristol City, and will miss out again. Rocco Vata is set for an extended period on the sidelines following a severe hamstring injury, while Caleb Wiley is nearing a return but is not expected to feature in this fixture. James Abankwah returned to the side last time out, following his red card offence, and is expected to start alongside Mattie Pollock at the back. As for Bristol City, their injury list remains amongst the longest in the country and has worsened following their latest game. A badly cut shin saw Mark Sykes end the night in hospital while Neto Borges was forced off during the first half, adding to an already stretched squad. The number of absentees has now increased to ten, with Luke McNally, Cameron Pring, Harry Cornick, Jason Knight, Max Bird, Joe Williams, Josh Stokes and Rob Atkinson all unavailable. With several players already operating out of position, Struber will have to go into the depths of the reserve and youth teams to complete a matchday squad. Watford possible starting lineup: Selvik; Ngakia, Abankwah, Pollock, Bola; Ince, Louza, Sissoko, Baah; V. Semedo, Doumbia Bristol City possible starting lineup: Vitek; Tanner, Dickie, Roberts; McCrorie, Randell, Vyner, Hirakawa; Twine, Riis, Mehmeti please log in to view this image We say: Watford 3-1 Bristol City Watford come into this one with some good momentum and a good record at home, but face a side who have been impressive on the road all season. However, with Bristol City's recent results and their injury crisis in mind, we expect Watford to make it four in a row at home and take all three points against the Robins. My prediction Watford 2- Bristol City 0
I really can't see anything but a loss at Vicarage Rd based on our less than satisfactory performances in the last 2 matches where we have only scored a single goal and let in six big ones to lay waste to our prior goal difference. The time is here where our lack of commitment to truly improve the squad will backfire on us as we don't have a bench full of good players to use as subs and our injury list is not helping us to put out a competitive team. The players we have brought in for several years are not up to snuff and if we are not prepared to splash the cash to bring in some decent talent we may as well give up on our dreams of ever playing in the Premier League, despite all of the false promises given to us by the people who are supposed to have the supporter's best interests at heart.
